Tuesday, September 04, 2007

Rainbow Quiz - Identify the personality - Week 55Here is the next weekly "Rainbow" quiz , where I would be giving 7 clues (Hence the name Rainbow) about a personality. Try to discover the person in the least number of clues . You can either leave the answer as a comment / email me . Feedback/ suggestions welcome. Googling is not preferred but then its just for fun and so go ahead if you need to.

"X" is so synonymous with that sport and one of the great sporting heroes of India.

clue # 1 : "X" was born to a Rajput family in Uttar Pradesh. After an early education he joined the Indian Army in 1922.

clue # 2 : While in Army, he became very passionate about Hockey. He exhibited excellent dribbling skills and knack for scoring goals.In 1928, "X" was selected to represent the Indian hockey team in the Summer Olympics .

clue # 4 : His performance at the 1936 Berlin Olympics was so impressive that Adolf Hitler supposedly offered to make "X" a Field Marshal in the German army, but the latter refused.

clue # 5 : On the field he was named the "Wizard of Hockey" for he exerted complete control on the ball. It appeared that the ball used to stick to his hockey stick while playing. So great was the magic of "X" that the Tokyo officials broke his hockey stick once to search for a magnet inside.

clue # 6 : "X" however died penniless and uncared for in a hospital, receiving a meagre pension. Towards his last days, he was very saddened by the plight of Indian Hockey.

clue # 7 : The Government of India honoured him by conferring him the Padma Bhushan . 29 August, his birthday is celebrated as the National Sports Day in India. The President gives away sport-related awards such as the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Arjuna Award and Dronacharya Award on this day at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.